Police: Man flees to small island within retention pond to escape officers in West Chester
WEST CHESTER TOWNSHIP, Ohio —
A man accused of assaulting a person with a hammer fled to a small island within a retention pond in West Chester Township on Tuesday in order to avoid arrest, according to the West Chester Police Department.
Police said when Zachary Ballard was confronted by a staff member at the Landings apartment complex, he allegedly assaulted the person with a hammer. The staff member was able to get away from Ballard without any injuries.
Ballard then ran away and into a retention pond nearby. He swam to a marshy island within the retention pond, police said.
Once police officers were able to get to the island, they were able to form a line to force Ballard to the edge of the island. Ballard was then taken into custody near 2515 Fox Sedge Way.
Ballard has been charged with breaking and entering and felonious assault, police said.
The West Chester Police Department is asking anyone who lives near apartment complexes off Smith Road, Beckett Road or Hutzelman Way and thinks they have been a victim of theft from May 1 to May 18 to contact them at 513-777-2231.
Man jumps into the river while trying to escape from the police, emerges unharmed
By The Canadian Press
Posted August 2, 2025 2:43 pm.
A police response to an assault near the OSHEAGA music festival site on Île Sainte-Hélène took a rather unusual turn at around 4 a.m. on Saturday morning.
“Upon arrival, police officers located a man who fled and jumped into the waters of the St. Lawrence River,” confirmed Jean-Pierre Brabant, spokesperson for the Montreal Police Service (SPVM).
“Several resources were deployed by Montreal police officers to try to locate the man in question,” he said.
The man was finally located about three and a half hours later, safe and sound.
“At around 7:40 a.m., security guards on Île Sainte-Hélène located the man in question on the neighboring Île Notre-Dame. Police officers conducted checks and were able to confirm that the man in question was indeed the one they were looking for,” said the SPVM spokesperson.
The 26-year-old man was “transported to an investigation center,” where he was to be questioned by police during the day “to determine his involvement in the assault” that occurred a few hours earlier.
A security perimeter was set up in the area to facilitate the work of investigators and analyze the scene with forensic technicians.
However, the SPVM spokesperson assured that this would not disrupt the OSHEAGA festivities, where tens of thousands of festival-goers are expected over the three days of the event, starting on Friday.
“As for the festivities, we’re talking about Osheaga and La Ronde, there will be no interference with the festivities. The perimeter is confined to a certain area on Sainte-Hélène Island, and there will be no interference with the festivities during the day,” said Officer Jean-Pierre Brabant.
–This report by La Presse Canadienne was translated by CityNews
West Bay man flees court to escape police
The search is on for John McArthur Hurlston who fled the courthouse on Wednesday, 21 April, in an attempt to escape arrest.
Hurlston, 57, of West Bay, who was before the courts to be sentenced for a breach of curfew, received a conditional discharge and fined $100 for costs.
The Cayman Compass understands that, upon completion of the sentencing, Hurlston learned police were on their way to arrest him for an unrelated matter. However, before officers arrived, Hurlston hurried out of the courtroom, down the stairs, past the court’s security staff and out into Heroes Square.
Several people who witnessed the event as it unfolded said an auxiliary officer attempted to chase Hurlston on foot. However, the officer eventually lost sight of him, after Hurlston scaled several fences along Bodden Road, off North Church Street, in George Town.
Witnesses say that, at the time of the daring daylight escape, there were several officers stationed about 300 feet away from the courthouse outside the Parliament building.
The officers were part of the preparations for the swearing-in of the independent-led PACT government scheduled for later that day. It is not clear if they were aware of Hurlston’s attempt to evade police; however, witnesses say none of them intervened.
The Compass reached out to the RCIPS for a comment on the matter. Questions about why Hurlston was wanted, and why officers outside Parliament did not intervene were not answered by publication time.
